Careers in pubs and bars
The nationwide Slug And Lettuce chain is part of the giant Laurel Pub Company and offers good opportunities for training and career progression
If you love the buzz of working with people but the idea of being stuck in a smoky, fuggy pub or bar makes your eyes water, think again. From 1 July smoking will have been completely banned in all indoor public places the length and breadth of the UK.
From a health point of view this is great news for everyone who works in the pub and bar industry - not just those of you who don't smoke - as passive smoking is a proven hazard.
It also opens up fresh challenges for the industry. Instead of being drinks-focused, the trend to serve better pub food will increase as operators try to win business from non-traditional pub-goers, such as families, women and diners.
Pub companies that have already introduced bans, such as JD Wetherspoon and Punch Taverns, have already reported increases in the food side of the business, and results from consumer analyst CACI predict a 5% increase in pub visitors in England and Wales after the ban.
So what are the other persuasive reasons for working in a pub? Many workers fall into bar work while they wait to start their "other" career, but before they know it they are hooked. If you have a flair for being sociable and the ambition to learn the business side of operating a bar, you can swiftly rise to become a manager - and even area manager in the larger pub companies. You can also switch between front and back of house, as our interview with Jason Smith at Chef & Brewer shows (see page 96). Ultimately, you could become a tenant, running your own pub on behalf of a brewery.
It's certainly a dynamic industry. According to Research and Market's Public Houses Market Report Plus 2007, UK pub turnover rose by 1.9% last year to £16.35b - and this was despite a 2,500 fall in the number of pubs.
If you set out on a career behind bars, every type of working environment is up for grabs - local boozer, family pub, gastropub, slick hotel bar, you name it. And for those of you who are prefer an urban chic habitat, check out the plethora of ultra-slick bars springing up in hotels and high streets.
The head chef
Jason Smith, 27
What Head chef
Where Lass O'Richmond Hill, Richmond, Surrey
Which company Spirit Group's Chef & Brewer brand
www.thespiritgroup.com
Where did you train? I never went to college. I started out 10 years ago, when I was 17, working in restaurants, although I had a brief stint in the Army. I started as a kitchen porter and worked my way up.
How did you get this job? I joined as a line chef in 2000 and within eight months progressed to a front-of-house role, later becoming assistant manager and then site manager. After spending a year away from pubs, setting up an internet business, I returned in May 2006 to take on the head chef role.
Why did you leave? I needed a break. That's what is so great about this industry - it's flexible.
And is that flexibility allowed in your cooking? Yes, it's great. Besides the core menu, I can create my own specials every day using seasonal food. My favourite dishes are pocketed plaice with baby pousse and prawn and parsley butter and farm-assured chicken breast wrapped in sage and prosciutto.
Changes are afoot, we gather. Yes, I have a brigade of four, but I'm recruiting a fifth because at the moment we are undergoing a £275,000 refurbishment. When we reopen, on 17 June, the Lass will be one of 10 new-style pubs at Chef & Brewer. We will have full table service and more of a restaurant feel.
Is the company geared up for training? Absolutely. As well as heading up the kitchen at the Lass, I also work for our parent, Spirit Group, as a training support chef, helping other employees develop their careers with the company and passing on knowledge and best practice. We look at everything from drawing up new menus and costings to cooking fish and shellfish.
How does the company help you develop? They have let me run. If you are prepared to work, they let you. I have turned down restaurant positions because I love the way Chef & Brewer is going. It's a myth that in pubs you are just cooking burgers and chips.
Give us an example. I recently came up with the idea of producing a monthly electronic newsletter for all 135 Spirit Chef & Brewer sites, specifically for head chefs. I got the thumbs-up from the management, and the first issue went out in April.
What next? My future is here, although I would like to move into the food-development side of the business
Chef & Brewer in a nutshell
- Operates 135 Chef & Brewer-branded pubs.
- Part of Spirit Group.
- Spirit Group is the managed division of Punch Taverns, with more than 9,300 pubs nationwide.
- There are more than 1,200 pubs, bars and restaurants in Spirit Group, including market-leading concepts Two For One, Chef & Brewer, John Barras and Wacky Warehouse, and several gastropubs.
The bar manager
Ben Provost, 38
What Bar manager
Where The American Bar, Stafford hotel, London
www.thestaffordhotel.co.uk
You sound French. Yes. I came over from France when I was 23, supposedly to spend a year improving my English, but I fell in love with the place. I've now worked here for 14 years. I started off as a commis behind the bar and worked my way up, training on the job.
What was your training?
I had spent five years in catering school in my native France and also worked in Switzerland. I had to adapt when I came here, but I found that once I had proved myself I could move up quickly.
How is it different? There were little things to adapt to. When I first came here I wasn't familiar with drinks such as Bucks Fizz - in France it is Mimosa. There are a lot of US guests, so we have to stay on top of new types of drinks and trends from America.
What do you like about your job? I had a restaurant background but I find working behind the bar much more exciting. In a restaurant the waiter is almost secondary to the food, but in a bar you can be a friend of the client.
What's special about the Stafford? Some 70% of the clientele is return business, which is nice, because over the years I have got to know the guests well. It is always nice to see family and grandchildren. It's a clubby atmosphere. I think it is only really at this hotel - it has a magical atmosphere. That is why I am still here
Has it changed over the time you have worked here? The American Bar doesn't stand still. We have had a refurbishment at the hotel and have doubled in size. The market is changing, too. When I started off there was an old clientele but now people are aged 25-80. It's not trendy, but it's not old-fashioned either.
Tell us about your day. I arrive at 9am, do some paperwork and then discuss the day with the team. There are nine of us altogether, although I am looking for a 10th for the summer. Everyone has their distinct job. We get ready for lunch and, if it's a sunny day, we prepare the alfresco service. In the afternoon we have a smaller team and get ready for the evening service. There is usually a rush from office workers and hotel guests returning at about 5.30-8pm before they go off to the theatre or out for dinner. At about 10pm they start coming back, but I leave at about 9pm. I don't come in at the weekends because it tends to be quieter.
And the future? I enjoy what I am doing and I guess I am scared of moving on somewhere that might be disappointing. I am not sure I would find the same somewhere else.
The Stafford hotel in a nutshell
- 81 rooms and suites, including a new all-suite mews development.
- The American Bar, famous for its martinis.
- Two-AA-rosette restaurant.
The trainee manager
Charlie Seccombe, 25
What Trainee assistant manager
Where One Elm, Stratford-upon-Avon
Which company Peach Pub Company
www.peachpubs.com
How did you get this job? I'd been working as a barman for a year - I had been going to join the Army, but it fell through - and the opportunity came up to be a trainee with Peach. I jumped at it, because it's a really good atmosphere here. We have a lot of fun.
What does the scheme entail?
I started the trainee scheme four months ago. At the moment I am head waiter, which makes a change. Before that I was bar manager, then bar supervisor. I looked after the bar, stocked up, did cellar work and so on. Now I handle cash and have started to do some recruitment.
I have a performance review every so often, so I sit down with my general manager and look at what I have learnt. I am confident that I will become an assistant manager soon - today, for instance, I am covering for a pub manager who is sick. It's great.
What's so great about the company?
There is a good profit-share scheme. The long-term bonus scheme means that your bonuses accrue and you ultimately get the option of financing a joint venture with the company.
Isn't it a tough regime, though?
We do eight shifts a week - two single shifts and three split shifts - which is about 52 hours a week. I've worked in pubs before so I am used to the hours, and my social life is mostly with caterers. I love it. All my friends have the same passion.
Any plans yet?
I'd love to stay with Peach for a few years. I'd love to move up the ladder and move on to my own site.
Peach Pub Company in a nutshell
- Seven pubs in the South.
- Growth through joint-venture partnerships.
- Philosophy of sourcing good food, caring for the environment and supporting local enterprise.
News flash: Want to be a tenant?
Leicestershire-based brewer Everards has launched a scheme that gives potential licensees an insight into running a pub before they decide to take on a tenancy.
The two-day "try before you buy" initiative is designed to give people the chance to see what running a pub is like before they make a big commitment to the industry. Candidates help to stock new deliveries, serve behind the bar and assist in the kitchen as well as helping with administration work.
The brewer, which has 161 pubs around the Midlands, operates all its pubs as individual businesses through licensees.
Telephone 0800 056 4111
Career-hungry?
The British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) is the professional body for the licensed retail sector and the BIIAB is the lead award body for the sector.
A key licensee qualification is the Level 2 National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders/Scottish Certificate. More details are available on www.biiab.org.
You will also find that large pub companies such as McMullen's, Greene King and Mitchells & Butlers offer structured training for bar staff who want to progress into management. Check out their websites:
Fast facts
- Pubs and bars are a £28.6b industry, and food accounts for £6b of that.
- There are 81,500 pubs in the UK.
- Some 30,000 new pubs will open over the next three years.
Source: Springboard UK
